1. Field of the Invention
Portable, real time voice translation systems are provided, the systems including a translation system for use on a single unit, portable computing device.
2. Description of the State-of-the-Art
The need for multilingual communication increases daily. Individuals, schools, businesses, and travelers increasingly face situations in which they require flexible and reliable language learning solutions and language translation products. For example, between 1990 and 2000, the population in the United States that speaks a language other than English at home increased by almost 50 percent. And, from an international perspective, increased globalization is driving similar demand for multilingual communication.
Powerful market forces underpin the increasing demand for multilingual language learning solutions in education, travel and leisure, training, and entertainment. As of the U.S. Census 2000, at least 15 percent of the population speaks a language other than English at home in 15 states. This “15/15” demographic likely will grow to “20/20” in the near term given the continuing rapid growth in the Spanish-speaking population in the United States. The annual market potential for language learning solutions, considering only these focal states is approximately $700M, which is a strong indicator of the need for innovations in this market that replenishes each year with the prevailing school-year calendars.
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) provides additional, federally-mandated impetus for more effective language learning solutions. NCLB requires states to test children in reading and math every year in grades 3 through 8. Under NCLB, schools and districts also are now accountable for helping students with limited English proficiency meet the same challenging academic content and achievement standards all children are required to meet. The NCLB requirements and objectives therefore result in a much higher level of visibility and accountability for language learning, compared to historical norms.
Rapidly changing demographics, NCLB, and the unquestionably high valuation of language acquisition lead to a strong confluence of market pressure for viable language learning solutions. In this environment, a significant problem arises because existing monolingual solutions are force-fit into multilingual markets.
Existing systems and methods of language learning suffer in that they present only one language at a time, and to use the products effectively, the users must be able to read and/or write. The existing systems and methods do not relate the spoken word to the written word, and are not fully aligned with curriculum standards. Some of the existing methods and systems are high-end electronics that are to complex and costly for many users.
One of skill in the art of teaching will appreciate multilingual language learning solutions that incorporate the key elements missing from existing monolingual language learning tools. Such a solution will include a flexible integration of multiple languages; involve speech recognition and syntheses to make them engaging for a user in the study of multilingual capabilities; adhere to the necessary student curriculum guidelines; provide a relationship between properly spelled written translations and properly pronounced spoken translations through speech recognition, translation, and coding technologies; and, will be conducive to language learning, even if the user cannot read or write. Moreover, such a solution will be especially engaging to users from the very young to the very old, and from the healthy to the infirm, through its appearance, functionalities, ease of use without supervision, and voice coding features.